Fuji Marlboro Folding Bike
I wasn’t looking for a bike but this showed up on my Facebook news feed in a Marketplace ad and caught my attention. It was different and it was cheap. I couldn’t resist.
It’s a Fuji/Marlboro folding bike with 26″ wheels, 4130 cromoly tubing and 15 speeds. Back in 1996 if you smoked enough Marlboros you could use your “Marlboro Miles” + $110 and purchase the bike through their rewards program. View the Marlboro ad here.
It had been stored outside and was in fairly rough condition and not rideable although the tires still had air which surprised me.
The wheels were out of true by quite a bit. The spokes, chain and cables were rusty. The rear derailleur cable was broke. The bike originally would have had a quick release on the stem but it had been replaced with a bolt and nut.
The purchase of this bike just happened to coincide with the retirement of Nova’s old MTB so I used parts from it to get the Fuji rideable. From her bike I used the wheels, chain and to lighten it up a bit, her aluminum handlebars and crank arms. The original tires, seat and pedals were ok but I went ahead and swapped them out with parts from my stash. The new rear wheel is an 8 speed but I’ve yet to figure out a way to mount the matching derailleur so I dug through my parts and found a friction shifter that allows me to use 5 of those 8 with the original derailleur. I removed the front derailleur for simplicity and can always manually move the chain between chainrings should I need to.
My first ride on the bike I didn’t like it at all. I think it was just the MTB geometry that I’m not used to. I’ve since settled in to it and it’s not bad.
I don’t really have a plan for the bike and only time will tell if I keep it or not. I don’t know if I will I ever make use of it’s folding capability. Regardless it’s kept me entertained for a couple of days so I feel I’ve already got my money’s worth out of it.
Nice to see how you’ve handled the refurbishing. I like the 1×8 gearing for simplicity. Give it a while to see it you’ll use a folding bike or the Fuji will duplicate what another one does in your quiver. By mountain bike geometry do you mean it has a longer top tube than current off road bikes? I’ve fallen in love with my Dahon, stowing it inside our vehicle recently on a rainy trip while my husband’s bike got muddy from road spray on the rear rack. Your Fuji is very unique, never heard of it until you bought one!
Hi,i’m still ownloaded the Fuji 4130 all original,,i got this bike for 28 years and never use it before till now,,all i done is put air and dw40 to Open and clse it,and is riding for the firt time
That’s cool. Enjoy it!
Thank you for your article.
I’m in the process of cleaning my mum’s shed and came across the bike. We got it from our father from America years ago (we live in Poland). Never knew it could be folded until now after reading your article. Unfortunately I put mine for sale as it needs some work and I don’t have the time nor skills to do.
Thank you though for your article
That’s interesting. Thanks for sharing.
Not sure how to explain the fit. Kind of compact and head-over-heels/handlebar. I recall feeling the same way when I’d ride my old MTB after not riding it for months. I do think the bike is a a pretty good fit for me though. From what I researched, they only came in two sizes and this is the smaller. Not sure how it compares with today’s MTB geometry. We’ve talked for sometime about getting 20″ folders. We’ll probably wait till we decide on our next vehicle to determine if they’d be beneficial.
Nice job on refurbishing this old folding bike! I have one just like it that was passed down in the family. Where can I get a rear rack for it as shown in the last pic or something comparable known to fit this fuji? TIA.
I replied to your e-mail but I’ll post it here also for future referrence. The rack I used is the Blackburn MTN Rack 1 which I had in my parts stash.
Hi Randy,
I have one of these from 1996 brand new / unassembled and still in the shipping box. Considering an ebay posting.
Take care,
King Henry
Wow that’s cool! I just bought another one a couple months ago.
What is the width of those Holy Rollers?
2.4 inches.
I just found one of these bikes at the dump…it was in excellent condition and I agree the MBT is not that good…I am going to give it a go for a while and see what happens
Wow nice find. Yeah not the most practical bike but still fun nonetheless. Currently mine is broken down and stashed away. I’ll probably get it out and build it back up again in the near future.
I don’t suppose you know the rough dimensions of the bike when folded? I’m trying to see if this may fit in a checked bag for travel.
Thanks!
I’ll try and get you the dimensions in the next day or 2.
This is a really approximate measurement of the bike folded with the wheels on… 37″ x 45 “.
This is a really approximate measurement of the bike folded with the wheels on… 37″ x 45 “. I’m not sure if there were multiple sizes of this bike but if there were this would be the smallest.
Thanks, I really appreciate it!
Does anyone lnow of any accessories that were available for this bike that would make it more collectible? Like the Schwinn Montague Bi-frame. There was a carrying case available for it. With the Marlboro logo?
Not that I’m aware of.
My new Marlboro folder is in great shape and I’m seriously thinking about an ebike conversion. I really like the idea of a full size foldable electric as I’m a stealth-camping Honda Odyssey nomad.
First mod though is a front shock fork; anybody know the fork tube diameter?
BTW: They did come in 17” and 20” sizes.
Interesting idea. The headset is 1 inch so it may be hard to find a decent suspension fork.
I just got one for free. It’s fun and in perfect condition. Marlboro made a very small bag for these too.
Wow great score. I didn’t know there was a bag. Thanks.
Hi! I got one of these bikes for a cheap price to use temporarily and am now selling it. There’s someone who’s extremely excited to buy it and I was wondering if this is actually a collector bike? I’m confused by their enthusiasm
I wouldn’t consider it a collector bike and have never heard of it being one. Maybe those who collect Marlboro memorabilia? I’m sure no expert though. It was cheap and that’s the main reason I bought mine.
How do you fold the bike
You open the quick release on the seat tube and pull out the seatpost and the bike folds. THere’s a quick release on the handlebars to loosen and turn them sideways and the pedal folds inward.
Hi, I just bought this bike from someone on Craigslist and the chain snapped as soon as I biked away. Is there any particular chain I should get from Amazon or would any schwinn multi-gear chain work? Apologize if this is a basic question, I’m new to bikes
Sorry but I can’t remember how many rear gears this bike came with stock. 7? Not just any multi-speed chain will work. It does make a difference which chain you get. You need to find a chain that’s suitable for the number of rear gears on the bike. Chains will typically fit a range of gears like 1-5 or 6-8 or 9 thru whatever (I think that’s right). Hope that makes sense.
I also have a 1996 marlboro mountain bike, I can’t find the original tires for this bike
Anyone know how I can get 2 tires
Sorry I don’t even recall what the original tires were.